Thomas
The Tank Engine

Last updated: Nov 2010 Please
note
that nothing is for sale at this
site, it is for information only.

Apology up front: as my children are now
grown (12, 14, and 16), they don't play with trains like they used to
(my 14 year old still likes them, though!). So, I have not been
tracking the world of Thomas the Tank Engine like I used to. Most of
the information on this page should still be relevant, however!

As a Thomas Train fan, you may have looked around for theme
toys and
train sets featuring Thomas the Tank Engine. If you have, you may also
have become as confused as I did over all the variety of train sets
that are available. There are HO and O scale model trains, wooden train
sets, and plastic track sets of various shapes and sizes. How do you
decide which to collect for your favorite child (or self!)? The
following is the result of some research on the subject I have done,
which I hope you find helpful. If you have any corrections or comments,
please feel free to contact me!

Learning Curve Thomas the
Tank Engine

The first trains sets I became aware of featuring Thomas the
Tank
Engine were the wooden sets distributed by Learning Curve in the United
States. These trains are "BRIO compatible", meaning they will operate
on similar wooden track made by BRIO. There are also several other
makers of similar wooden train sets. Most of the other train articles
on this site are about these trains.

Of all of the Thomas sets I have seen available, I like these
wooden
"BRIO-compatible" sets the most right now. My sons are young (ages 3
and 5) and like to push trains on the ground, thus, remotely controlled
model trains are less useful (or fun) for them right now. Also, the
wooden track is very versatile. It acts as a puzzle and requires them
to think how to create closed patterns of track. The variety of
buildings and bridges (many that move, provide loading docks, and so
forth) create more opportunities for creativity and "action" play. The
trains have a lot of personality, and the compatibility with the many
other brands of wooden track means there is almost no end to the extras
that can be added. Battery powered trains can be used as well, and
though they have a tendency to derail once in a while, they offer a
little bit of "remote control" action as well.

It should be noted that while Learning Curve holds the license
for
Thomas the Tank Engine wooden trains here in the U.S., BRIO licenses
Thomas the Tank Engine wooden trains in some parts of Europe. So if you
are interested in getting BRIO made Thomas trains, you may be able to
find a shop overseas.

Learning Curve introduced the Take
Along Thomas
series of die-cast metal trains that works as a good alternative to the
discontinued ERTL series (see below). One of the advantages of the
Learning Curve sets are that the trains connect with magnetic couplers.
The plastic pin and peg connectors of the ERTL series was certainly not
the best design.

Take Along Thomas is widely
available now, including
at your local Target chain of
department stores.

There are play sets available that
are designed to be
"all inclusive", thus allowing you to take your play set anywhere you
go. The track is plastic, and the trains and track sets are not
compatible with the wooden railroads. However, you could use them with
some of the new "road" track available from a couple of the wooden
railroad manufacturers that does not use the raised railroad bed format
for the track.

Somebody asked me how to distinguish Take Along
Thomas from the wooden Thomas and Friends trains. When shopping on
e-Bay, for example, it may sometimes be difficult to tell the
difference. As mentioned above, a Take Along Thomas train won't fit on
the vario-system wooden track as they are too narrow.

The main distinguishing characteristics are:

1. Take Along Thomas trains are die-cast metal. The
wooden track trains are made of wood and plastic.
2. The magnetic couplers are different. The magnets on the Take Along
trains are all chrome as shown in the photo here. The wooden Thomas
trains have a black round magnet covered with a round chrome cover.
3. The packaging for both have the "Thomas and Friends" logo, but the
Take Along Thomas trains include those words in the logo as well.

Hope this helps!

ERTL Die-Cast

Update May 2004.
Actually, this is old
news, but I've only just now looked into it! Going by information on
the www.ertltoys.com
website, it
seems that ERTL has discontinued the metal die-cast trains as of 2002.
This is the last year the die-cast models appear in their catalog.

The Learning Curve Take Along Thomas sets seem to be a good
replacement (see above).

Through the years, ERTL seems to have made several different
Thomas
Train sets, which adds a bit to the confusion of which sets are which.
The die-cast trains my son has were noted on at least one web site as
"Regular Edition Series" trains. I have seen them in stores with both
an ERTL blister pack label as well as a Shining Time Station blister
pack label. As stated, these trains are die-cast metal with plastic
wheels (though I think a few of the cars have plastic bodies). They are
not as wide as the wooden trains (and won't operate on the wooden
track), and generally had cost a bit less than their wooden
counterparts. My youngest son has several of these, and seems to like
them.

The Regular Edition series runs on track that is similar to
Hot
Wheels(R) and Matchbox(R) roadways. That is, there is no raised center
to the track, it is flat with raised edges. There are several train
sets, add on buildings, and so forth available, as well as characters,
cars, Harold the Helicopter, and other items. The ERTL Regular Edition
series seems well designed for free form play, and is very similar to
the Hot Wheel/Matchbox type systems.

ERTL also makes a "Gold Rail" series. The web page that
featured
these stated they are Japanese. These trains are die-cast or plastic
with magnetic couplers. I have never seen these and don't know what
size they are. The play sets appear to have small "gold" track built
in,
thus, I suppose, the Gold Rail title. Prices range from $2.50 for a
plastic train to $7 for a die cast to $25 for a Sodor Bay play set.
See:
http://marketplaza.com/evers/evers.shtml for samples.

ERTL also used to make a few miniature Thomas sets that fold
up into
easy to carry play sets. These look pretty neat and my boys love the
sets they got. The trains operate on a single wheel that rests inside
the raised edges of the plastic track, and come with one coal car. The
James set features little logs and boulders that can be set to fall on
the track, where Terrance the Tractor must come along and push them
off. The Thomas set features Harold the Helicopter in his own hangar.
There is also a larger set available which of course is not quite so
portable. These sets are not for the very young since they might
swallow the small parts. These miniature sets are not compatible with
any other products, but they offer enough play on their own (at least
until the tiny pieces are lost).

These sets do not seem to be available anymore. Tomy makes a
similar
small set though (see below, current May 2004).

TOMY

Update: I haven't
tracked this product for some years, but looking at what's available
now (Nov 2010), it appears that Tomy no longer makes a Thomas line
under their plastic Tomica sets, although generic trains are still
available. The line has moved through several companies, and currently
Fisher Price makes the TrackMaster line that appears to be compatible
with the older Tomica Thomas trains (see this page at Wikipedia: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Thomas_and_Friends_merchandise)

TOMICA World:
The TOMICA World line of
battery powered trains is sort of a child's version of electric trains.
The track is larger, plastic grooved track; the trains are battery
powered; and the trains won't fall off the track like with model
trains. The Tomica World line includes non-Thomas trains as well. These
sets are available in a wide variety of sizes, from beginner oval
tracks to large "metro" layouts. There is a wide variety of tracks,
cars, and buildings available. While as a kid I always had an
attraction to battery powered trains, I really think the manually
powered trains are more fun, but these sets make a good introduction to
model trains without the frustrations for little hands.

TOMY My First Thomas: Tomy
used to
make a series called "My First Thomas", which are larger manually
powered plastic trains. They were much larger than the wooden sets, and
the trains were larger (and more durable) than the Tomica World trains.
They were designed for toddlers who may have temptations to place small
pieces in their mouths if they should break free. While the size of the
trains made them great for pushing around on the floor, Tomy also
offered large plastic track to enhance game play. My younger boy had a
few of these and really enjoyed them. They also had rubberized wheels
so they have less tendency to scratch furniture. These trains don't
seem to be available any more.

Other Products:
Some other current (as of May
2004) products include:

Thomas Join 'n Go: Simple Remote Control
Thomas backs up and
links to Annie & ClarabelleThomas Race on the Rails: Thomas, Diesel, James and
Percy
wind-ups race on a plastic 4-lane raceway.Bring Along Thomas: small fold-up set to fit in your
pocket with
Thomas, horses, and interactive play set.Sodor Engine Pull Backs and Pull
Along Thomas:
larger floor play plastic trains for Toddlers.

OO/HO/G/027-Gauge Model
Trains

A few companies make Thomas trains that are compatible with
standard
model trains, such as G-gauge, OO/HO gauge, and so forth.

Bachmann

Bachmann makes HO-scale Thomas the Tank Engine HO-scale
electric
train sets and cars. The Deluxe Thomas Train Set, for example, comes
with Thomas the Tank Engine with moving eyes, Annie and Clarabelle,
Harold the Helicopter, Bertie the Bus, the speed controller, and
56"x38" oval track. Other cars are available as well. Products are
still available as of Nov 2010.

Hornby has been in business in the U.K. for over 50 years, and
is
mostly known for it lines of electric model trains. For the Thomas
Train fan, they offer several sets of Thomas the Tank Engine. Some of
the sets are not showing current availability on the Hornby homepage,
so I'm not sure specifically what is available or still being produced
(May 2004).

Hornby's main offering are HO or OO-gauge Thomas sets.

For younger children, you can get plastic track and wind-up or
"clockwork" engines. The advantage, of course, is that you don't have
to worry about cleaning the track to maintain electrical contact! The
trains will also fit the electric HO track as well.

For older children, you can go with the metal HO or OO-gauge
track
with low-voltage transformer. A variety of Thomas characters and sets
are available. These sets can be used with other HO electric trains,
and the clockwork engine will even work on this set without needing to
plug in the controller!

The Hornby website has an entry for a remote control train. It
appears that you can even add additional controllers to control more
than one engine at the same time. The description provided is not very
detailed, however, and I'm not sure what is currently available.

Hornby Thomas products are still available (in the U.K. only,
however) as of Nov 2010.

Lionel used to make a large, garden-scale G-Scale Thomas Train
set with Thomas, Annie,
Clarabelle, and a circle track with transformer and controller. I
believe
they stopped production in 2001.

They also used to make an O/O27 Gauge line of electric Thomas
Trains. This was dropped in 2002, so you'll have to search the shops
and Internet sites if you want some Thomas characters to go with your
Lionel O/O27 electric trains. I've heard they made some more in 2004,
so check your dealer for the latest!

Finally, the Lionel Great
Railway Adventures trains do not feature any Thomas
characters, but are compatible with the wooden railways, or you can
purchase Lionel plastic track (more information is on the main Wooden
Railways page).

A quick look in Nov 2010 showed only a couple of Thomas related
products on their website.